Resource configuration for a network data processing system

ABSTRACT

A method and apparatus for managing a service is disclosed. A program system running on a computer system in a network data processing system identifies the service on the computer system and a set of resources used by the service. The program system collects information about the service and the set of resources used by the service. The program system uses the information collected to identify a change to a configuration for the service which will increase performance of the service. The program system then makes the identified change to the configuration for the service.

BACKGROUND

1. Field

The disclosure relates generally to a network data processing systemand, in particular, to configuring resources in the network dataprocessing system. Still more particularly, the present disclosurerelates to a method and apparatus for configuring resources in a networkdata processing system using bots.

2. Description of the Related Art

Cloud computing involves the delivery of computing resources as aservice instead of a product. Resources such as hardware, software, andinformation are provided to users over a network such as the Internet.Cloud computing provides users access to resources without requiring theusers to have knowledge of the physical location and configuration ofthe system providing the services.

Providers of cloud computing resources often deliver applications viathe Internet. These applications are accessed from a web browser. Thesoftware and information used by the users are typically stored atserver computers on a remote location.

As new services are offered, or as the capacity for current resourcesare increased, the provider installs these services on server computers.For example, database services, hypertext transfer protocol services,and other types of service may be installed on computers in a cloudcomputing system. These services are typically installed with a defaultconfiguration that allows a particular service to run using a minimumamount of resources. These default configurations, however, may not bethe optimal configuration for providing a desired level of performanceby a particular service.

Currently, system engineers examine a service running on a computer toidentify and solve performance issues. This type of trouble-shooting toincrease performance of a service often requires the user to be asubject matter expert in software performance and configuration. Thistype of management of services increases performance of those services.The increase in performance, however, is often more labor-intensive andexpensive than desired.

Therefore, it would be advantageous to have a method and apparatus thattakes into account at least some of the issues discussed above, as wellas possibly other issues.

SUMMARY

In one illustrative embodiment, a method, apparatus, and computerprogram product for managing a service is provided. A program systemrunning on a computer system in a network data processing systemidentifies the service on the computer system and a set of resourcesused by the service. The program system collects information about theservice and the set of resources used by the service. The program systemuses the information collected to identify a change to a configurationfor the service which will increase performance of the service. Theprogram system then makes the identified change to the configuration forthe service.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE SEVERAL VIEWS OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is an illustration of a cloud computing node in accordance withan illustrative embodiment;

FIG. 2 is an illustration of a cloud computing environment in accordancewith an illustrative embodiment;

FIG. 3 is an illustration of a set of functional abstraction layers of acloud computing environment in accordance with an illustrativeembodiment;

FIG. 4 is an illustration of a resource configuration environment inaccordance with an illustrative embodiment;

FIG. 5 is an illustration of a program system in accordance with anillustrative embodiment;

FIG. 6 is a block diagram illustrating components involved in managingthe operations of a program system in a resource configurationenvironment in accordance with an illustrative embodiment;

FIG. 7 is a figure of an example of information that is identified by acomputer system in accordance with an illustrative embodiment;

FIG. 8 is a block diagram of components involved in managing a servicein accordance with an illustrative embodiment;

FIG. 9 is a flowchart of a process for managing a service in accordancewith an illustrative embodiment;

FIG. 10 is a flowchart of a process for managing a service in accordancewith an illustrative embodiment;

FIG. 11 is a flowchart of a process for managing a service in accordancewith an illustrative embodiment; and

FIG. 12 is an illustration of a data processing system in accordancewith an illustrative embodiment.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

As will be appreciated by one skilled in the art, aspects of the presentinvention may be embodied as a system, method, or computer programproduct. Accordingly, aspects of the present invention may take the formof an entirely hardware embodiment, an entirely software embodiment(including firmware, resident software, micro-code, etc.), or anembodiment combining software and hardware aspects that may allgenerally be referred to herein as a “circuit,” “module,” or “system.”Furthermore, aspects of the present invention may take the form of acomputer program product embodied in one or more computer readablemedium(s) having computer readable program code embodied thereon.

Any combination of one or more computer readable medium(s) may beutilized. The computer readable medium may be a computer readable signalmedium or a computer readable storage medium. A computer readablestorage medium may be, for example, but not limited to, an electronic,magnetic, optical, electromagnetic, infrared, or semiconductor system,apparatus, or device, or any suitable combination of the foregoing. Morespecific examples (a non-exhaustive list) of the computer readablestorage medium would include the following: an electrical connectionhaving one or more wires, a portable computer diskette, a hard disk, arandom access memory (RAM), a read-only memory (ROM), an erasableprogrammable read-only memory (EPROM or Flash memory), an optical fiber,a portable compact disc read-only memory (CD-ROM), an optical storagedevice, a magnetic storage device, or any suitable combination of theforegoing. In the context of this document, a computer readable storagemedium may be any tangible medium that can contain or store a programfor use by or in connection with an instruction processing system,apparatus, or device.

A computer readable signal medium may include a propagated data signalwith computer readable program code embodied therein, for example, inbaseband or as part of a carrier wave. Such a propagated signal may takeany of a variety of forms, including, but not limited to,electro-magnetic, optical, or any suitable combination thereof. Acomputer readable signal medium may be any computer readable medium thatis not a computer readable storage medium and that can communicate,propagate, or transport a program for use by or in connection with aninstruction processing system, apparatus, or device.

Program code embodied on a computer readable medium may be transmittedusing any appropriate medium, including, but not limited to, wireless,wireline, optical fiber cable, radio frequency, etc., or any suitablecombination of the foregoing.

Computer program code for carrying out operations for aspects of thepresent invention may be written in any combination of one or moreprogramming languages, including an object oriented programming languagesuch as Java, Smalltalk, C++, or the like and conventional proceduralprogramming languages, such as the “C” programming language or similarprogramming languages. The program code may be run entirely on theuser's computer, partly on the user's computer, as a stand-alonesoftware package, partly on the user's computer and partly on a remotecomputer, or entirely on the remote computer or server. In the latterscenario, the remote computer may be connected to the user's computerthrough any type of network, including a local area network (LAN) or awide area network (WAN), or the connection may be made to an externalcomputer (for example, through the Internet using an Internet ServiceProvider).

Aspects of the present invention are described below with reference toflowchart illustrations and/or block diagrams of methods, apparatus(systems), and computer program products according to embodiments of theinvention. It will be understood that each block of the flowchartillustrations and/or block diagrams, and combinations of blocks in theflowchart illustrations and/or block diagrams, can be implemented bycomputer program instructions. These computer program instructions maybe provided to a processor of a general purpose computer, specialpurpose computer, or other programmable data processing apparatus toproduce a machine, such that the instructions, which are processed viathe processor of the computer or other programmable data processingapparatus, create means for implementing the functions/acts specified inthe flowchart and/or block diagram block or blocks.

These computer program instructions may also be stored in a computerreadable medium that can direct a computer, other programmable dataprocessing apparatus, or other devices to function in a particularmanner, such that the instructions stored in the computer readablemedium produce an article of manufacture including instructions whichimplement the function/act specified in the flowchart and/or blockdiagram block or blocks.

The computer program instructions may also be loaded onto a computer,other programmable data processing apparatus, or other devices to causea series of operational steps to be performed on the computer, otherprogrammable apparatus or other devices to produce a computerimplemented process such that the instructions which run on the computeror other programmable apparatus provide processes for implementing thefunctions/acts specified in the flowchart and/or block diagram block orblocks.

It is understood in advance that although this disclosure includes adetailed description on cloud computing, implementation of the teachingsrecited herein are not limited to a cloud computing environment. Rather,embodiments of the present invention are capable of being implemented inconjunction with any other type of computing environment now known orlater developed.

For convenience, the Detailed Description includes the followingdefinitions which have been derived from the “Draft NIST WorkingDefinition of Cloud Computing” by Peter Mell and Tim Grance, dated Oct.7, 2009.

Cloud computing is a model of service delivery for enabling convenient,on-demand network access to a shared pool of configurable computingresources (e.g. networks, network bandwidth, servers, processing,memory, storage, applications, virtual machines, and services) that canbe rapidly provisioned and released with minimal management effort orinteraction with a provider of the service. This cloud model may includeat least five characteristics, at least three service models, and atleast four deployment models.

Characteristics are as follows:

On-demand self-service: a cloud consumer can unilaterally provisioncomputing capabilities, such as server time and network storage, asneeded automatically without requiring human interaction with theservice provider.

Broad network access: capabilities are available over a network andaccessed through standard mechanisms that promote use by heterogeneousthin or thick client platforms (e.g., mobile phones, laptops, and PDAs).

Resource pooling: the provider's computing resources are pooled to servemultiple consumers using a multi-tenant model, with different physicaland virtual resources dynamically assigned and reassigned according todemand. There is a sense of location independence in that the consumergenerally has no control or knowledge over the exact location of theprovided resources but may be able to specify location at a higher levelof abstraction (e.g., country, state, or datacenter).

Rapid elasticity: capabilities can be rapidly and elasticallyprovisioned, in some cases automatically, to quickly scale out andrapidly released to quickly scale in. To the consumer, the capabilitiesavailable for provisioning often appear to be unlimited and can bepurchased in any quantity at any time.

Measured service: cloud systems automatically control and optimizeresource use by leveraging a metering capability at some level ofabstraction appropriate to the type of service (e.g., storage,processing, bandwidth, and active user accounts). Resource usage can bemonitored, controlled, and reported which provides transparency for boththe provider and consumer of the utilized service.

Service Models are as follows:

Software as a Service (SaaS): the capability provided to the consumer isto use the provider's applications running on a cloud infrastructure.The applications are accessible from various client devices through athin client interface such as a web browser (e.g., web-based e-mail).The consumer does not manage or control the underlying cloudinfrastructure including network, servers, operating systems, storage,or even individual application capabilities, with the possible exceptionof limited user-specific application configuration settings.

Platform as a Service (PaaS): the capability provided to the consumer isto deploy onto the cloud infrastructure consumer-created or acquiredapplications created using programming languages and tools supported bythe provider. The consumer does not manage or control the underlyingcloud infrastructure including networks, servers, operating systems, orstorage, but has control over the deployed applications and possiblyapplication hosting environment configurations.

Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS): the capability provided to theconsumer is to provision processing, storage, networks, and otherfundamental computing resources where the consumer is able to deploy andrun arbitrary software, which can include operating systems andapplications. The consumer does not manage or control the underlyingcloud infrastructure but has control over operating systems, storage,deployed applications, and possibly limited control of select networkingcomponents (e.g., host firewalls).

Deployment Models are as follows:

Private cloud: the cloud infrastructure is operated solely for anorganization. It may be managed by the organization or a third party andmay exist on-premises or off-premises.

Community cloud: the cloud infrastructure is shared by severalorganizations and supports a specific community that has shared concerns(e.g., mission, security requirements, policy, and complianceconsiderations). It may be managed by the organizations or a third partyand may exist on-premises or off-premises.

Public cloud: the cloud infrastructure is made available to the generalpublic or a large industry group and is owned by an organization sellingcloud services.

Hybrid cloud: the cloud infrastructure is a composition of two or moreclouds (private, community, or public) that remain unique entities butare bound together by standardized or proprietary technology thatenables data and application portability (e.g., cloud bursting forload-balancing between clouds).

A cloud computing environment is service oriented with a focus onstatelessness, low coupling, modularity, and semantic interoperability.At the heart of cloud computing is an infrastructure comprising anetwork of interconnected nodes.

Referring now to FIG. 1, an illustration of a cloud computing node isshown in accordance with an illustrative embodiment. Cloud computingnode 10 is only one example of a suitable cloud computing node and isnot intended to suggest any limitation as to the scope of use orfunctionality of embodiments of the invention described herein.Regardless, cloud computing node 10 is capable of being implementedand/or performing any of the functionality set forth hereinabove.

In cloud computing node 10 there is computer system/server 12, which isoperational with numerous other general purpose or special purposecomputing system environments or configurations. Examples of well-knowncomputing systems, environments, and/or configurations that may besuitable for use with computer system/server 12 include, but are notlimited to, personal computer systems, server computer systems, thinclients, thick clients, hand-held or laptop devices, multiprocessorsystems, microprocessor-based systems, set top boxes, programmableconsumer electronics, network PCs, minicomputer systems, mainframecomputer systems, and distributed cloud computing environments thatinclude any of the above systems or devices, and the like.

Computer system/server 12 may be described in the general context ofcomputer system-executable instructions, such as program modules, beingrun by a computer system. Generally, program modules may includeroutines, programs, objects, components, logic, data structures, and soon that perform particular tasks or implement particular abstract datatypes. Computer system/server 12 may be practiced in distributed cloudcomputing environments where tasks are performed by remote processingdevices that are linked through a communications network. In adistributed cloud computing environment, program modules may be locatedin both local and remote computer system storage media including memorystorage devices.

As shown in FIG. 1, computer system/server 12 in cloud computing node 10is shown in the form of a general-purpose computing device. Thecomponents of computer system/server 12 may include, but are not limitedto, one or more processors or processing units 16, memory 28, and bus 18that couples various system components including memory 28 to processorunit 16.

Bus 18 represents one or more of any of several types of bus structures,including a memory bus or memory controller, a peripheral bus, anaccelerated graphics port, and a processor or local bus using any of avariety of bus architectures. By way of example, and not limitation,such architectures include Industry Standard Architecture (ISA) bus,Micro Channel Architecture (MCA) bus, Enhanced ISA (EISA) bus, VideoElectronics Standards Association (VESA) local bus, and PeripheralComponent Interconnects (PCI) bus.

Computer system/server 12 typically includes a variety of computersystem readable media. Such media may be any available media that isaccessible by computer system/server 12, and it includes both volatileand non-volatile media, removable and non-removable media.

Memory 28 can include computer system readable media in the form ofvolatile memory, such as random access memory (RAM) 30 and/or cachememory 32. Computer system/server 12 may further include otherremovable/non-removable, volatile/non-volatile computer system storagemedia. By way of example only, storage system 34 can be provided forreading from and writing to a non-removable, non-volatile magnetic media(not shown and typically called a “hard drive”). Although not shown, amagnetic disk drive for reading from and writing to a removable,non-volatile magnetic disk (e.g., a “floppy disk”), and an optical diskdrive for reading from or writing to a removable, non-volatile opticaldisk such as a CD-ROM, DVD-ROM, or other optical media can be provided.In such instances, each can be connected to bus 18 by one or more datamedia interfaces. As will be further depicted and described below,memory 28 may include at least one program product having a set (e.g.,at least one) of program modules that are configured to carry out thefunctions of embodiments of the invention.

Program/utility 40, having a set (at least one) of program modules 42,may be stored in memory 28 by way of example, and not limitation, aswell as an operating system, one or more application programs, otherprogram modules, and program data. Each of the operating systems, one ormore application programs, other program modules, and program data orsome combination thereof, may include an implementation of a networkingenvironment. Program modules 42 generally carry out the functions and/ormethodologies of embodiments of the invention as described herein.

Computer system/server 12 may also communicate with one or more externaldevices 14 such as a keyboard, a pointing device, display 24, etc.; oneor more devices that enable a user to interact with computersystem/server 12; and/or any devices (e.g., network card, modem, etc.)that enable computer system/server 12 to communicate with one or moreother computing devices. Such communication can occur via I/O interfaces22. Still yet, computer system/server 12 can communicate with one ormore networks such as a local area network (LAN), a general wide areanetwork (WAN), and/or a public network (e.g., the Internet) via networkadapter 20. As depicted, network adapter 20 communicates with the othercomponents of computer system/server 12 via bus 18. It should beunderstood that although not shown, other hardware and/or softwarecomponents could be used in conjunction with computer system/server 12.Examples include, but are not limited to: microcode, device drivers,redundant processing units, external disk drive arrays, RAID systems,tape drives, and data archival storage systems, etc.

Referring now to FIG. 2, an illustration of a cloud computingenvironment 50 is depicted in accordance with an illustrativeembodiment. As shown, cloud computing environment 50 comprises one ormore cloud computing nodes 10 with which local computing devices used bycloud consumers, such as, for example, personal digital assistant (PDA)or cellular telephone 54A, desktop computer 54B, laptop computer 54C,and/or automobile computer system 54N may communicate. Cloud computingnodes 10 may communicate with one another. They may be grouped (notshown) physically or virtually, in one or more networks, such asPrivate, Community, Public, or Hybrid clouds as described hereinabove,or a combination thereof. This allows cloud computing environment 50 tooffer infrastructure, platforms, and/or software as services for which acloud consumer does not need to maintain resources on a local computingdevice. It is understood that the types of computing devices 54A-N shownin FIG. 2 are intended to be illustrative only and that cloud computingnodes 10 and cloud computing environment 50 can communicate with anytype of computerized device over any type of network and/or networkaddressable connection (e.g., using a web browser).

Referring now to FIG. 3, an illustration of a set of functionalabstraction layers provided by cloud computing environment 50 (FIG. 2)is shown in accordance with an illustrative embodiment. It should beunderstood in advance that the components, layers, and functions shownin FIG. 3 are intended to be illustrative only and embodiments of theinvention are not limited thereto. As depicted, the following layers andcorresponding functions are provided:

Hardware and software layer 60 includes hardware and softwarecomponents. Examples of hardware components include mainframes, in oneexample IBM® zSeries® systems; RISC (Reduced Instruction Set Computer)architecture based servers, in one example IBM pSeries® systems; IBMxSeries® systems; IBM BladeCenter® systems; storage devices; andnetworks and networking components. Examples of software componentsinclude network application server software, in one example IBMWebSphere® application server software; and database software, in oneexample IBM DB2® database software. (IBM, zSeries, pSeries, xSeries,BladeCenter, WebSphere, and DB2 are trademarks of International BusinessMachines Corporation registered in many jurisdictions worldwide.)

Virtualization layer 62 provides an abstraction layer from which thefollowing examples of virtual entities may be provided: virtual servers;virtual storage; virtual networks, including virtual private networks;virtual applications and operating systems; and virtual clients.

In one example, management layer 64 may provide the functions describedbelow. Resource provisioning provides dynamic procurement of computingresources and other resources that are utilized to perform tasks withinthe cloud computing environment. Metering and pricing provides costtracking as resources are utilized within the cloud computingenvironment, and billing or invoicing for consumption of theseresources. In one example, these resources may comprise applicationsoftware licenses. Security provides identity verification for cloudconsumers and tasks, as well as protection for data and other resources.User portal provides access to the cloud computing environment forconsumers and system administrators. Service level management providescloud computing resource allocation and management such that requiredservice levels are met. Service Level Agreement (SLA) planning andfulfillment provides pre-arrangement for, and procurement of, cloudcomputing resources for which a future requirement is anticipated inaccordance with an SLA.

Workloads layer 66 provides examples of functionality for which thecloud computing environment may be utilized. Examples of workloads andfunctions which may be provided from this layer include: mapping andnavigation; software development and lifecycle management; virtualclassroom education delivery; data analytics processing; transactionprocessing; and configuration processing.

The different illustrative embodiments recognize and take into account anumber of different considerations. For example, the differentillustrative embodiments recognize and take into account that manydifferent types of resources are used by a service. For example, aservice in a network data processing system may have different processesor threads that use some amount of resources. These resources includeprocessor time, memory, storage, network ports, and other services.

The different illustrative embodiments also recognize and take intoaccount that the actual use, by a first service, of resources in aserver computer may not be the only factor limiting performance. Forexample, if the first service uses a second service to process requestsfrom a user, the configuration of the second service may affect theperformance of the first service. In yet another example, the secondservice may access a third service to process requests from the firstservice. The configuration of the third service may affect theperformance of the second service in processing requests for the firstservice. As can be seen, other services involved in processing requestsfrom the first service may affect the performance of the first service.

Thus, one or more illustrative embodiments provide a method andapparatus for managing a service in a network data processing system. Inone example, a program runs in a computer system and identifies theservice on the computer system in the network data processing system.The program identifies a set of resources used by the service. Theprogram collects information about the service and the set of resources.The program identifies a change to the configuration for the service toincrease performance of the service in which the changes are identifiedusing the information collected by the program.

Turning now to FIG. 4, an illustration of a resource configurationenvironment is depicted in accordance with an illustrative embodiment.Resource configuration environment 400 is an example of an environmentthat may be present in different types of computing systems. Forexample, resource configuration environment 400 may be included incomputer system/server 12 in FIG. 1 on a cloud computing node such ascloud computing nodes 10 in cloud computing environment 50 in FIG. 2. Inparticular, resource configuration environment 400 may provideconfiguration processing in workloads layer 66 in FIG. 3.

As depicted, services 402 in network data processing system 404 may bemanaged in resource configuration environment 400. In this illustrativeexample, network data processing system 404 may take the form of cloud406. Cloud 406 may include one or more computer systems such as computersystem/server 12 on cloud computing nodes 10 in cloud computingenvironment 50 in FIG. 2.

In this example, a program system analyzes service 408 in services 402to determine whether changes can be made to improve the performance ofservice 408. Service 408 may be selected for analysis in a number ofdifferent ways.

For example, service 408 may be selected because service 408 is a newlyinstalled service and a default configuration for service 408 may notprovide a desired level of performance. In another illustrative example,service 408 may be selected because service 408 is on a computer systemin which changes have been made. Service 408 may be selected becauseservice 408 is used by another service.

In this illustrative example, service 408 runs on computer system 410 innetwork data processing system 404. Computer system 410 is a hardwarecomputer system rather than a virtual computer system in theseillustrative examples. Of course, computer system 410 may includevirtual computers, depending on the particular implementation.

Program system 412 runs on computer system 410. A set as used hereinwith reference to items mean one or more items. For example, set of bots412 is one or more bots. A bots is a software application that runsautomated tasks in network data processing system 404. Program system412 identifies a presence of service 408 on computer system 410. Programsystem 412 is configured to run on computer system 410 without needinginput from another program or a human user. In this illustrativeexample, program system 412 may take the form of bot 414. Bot 414 may bea software application that runs on automated tasks in network dataprocessing system 404.

Program system 412 comprises group of programs 416. A “group” as usedherein, with reference to items, means one or more items. For example,“group of programs 416” is one or more programs. Group of programs 416is configured to run independently. In other words, group of programs416 for program system 412 is configured to run without requiring inputfrom another program or human user. As a result, program system 412 maybe autonomous in performing operations within resource configurationenvironment 400.

As depicted, program system 412 identifies set of resources 418 used byservice 408. A “set” as used herein with reference to items, means oneor more items. For example, “set of resources 418” is one or moreresources. Set of resources 418 can be software, hardware, or acombination of the two. In these illustrative examples, set of resources418 may be services on computer system 410 or on another computer systemin network data processing system 404. Service 408 may be affected byother services on computer system 410 or other computer systems innetwork data processing system 404. For example, other services may alsobe using set of resources 418. In these illustrative examples, the useof set of resources 418 by other services may occur when processingtasks on other services in network data processing system 404.

As depicted, program system 412 collects information 420 about service408 and set of resources 418 in these illustrative examples. Information420 collected by program system 412 may include, for example,configuration 424 for service 408. Configuration 424 for service 408 mayinclude a configuration for set of resources 418 used by service 408.Information 420 collected by program system 412 may also includeperformance 426 of service 408 in these illustrative examples.

In these illustrative examples, program system 412 identifies change 422to configuration 424 for service 408 to increase performance 426 ofservice 408. In these illustrative examples, change 422 is identifiedusing information 420 collected by program system 412. Change 422 forconfiguration 424 for service 408 may be for services 402, set ofresources 418 used by service 408, or both in these illustrativeexamples. In these illustrative examples, program system 412 may thenchange configuration 424 for the service using the change identified forthe service.

In these illustrative examples, change 422 may be identified usingrepository 428. Repository 428 may be located on server computer system430 in these illustrative examples.

As depicted, program system 412 has list of services 432. In theseillustrative examples, list of services 432 may be a list of servicesmanaged by program system 412. In other words, services listed in listof services 432 are services that program system 412 manages foranalysis and identification of possible configuration changes.

In these illustrative examples, service 408 is analyzed when programsystem 412 identifies service 408 or an output of service 408. Theoutput of service 408 may be, for example, a result of service 408, alog for service 408, and/or a performance for service 408.

In these illustrative examples, service 408 may be managed when service408 is selected for analysis to see if changes may be made to improvethe performance of service 408. When service 408 is managed, an analysismay be made to determine whether service 408 is analyzed. In theseillustrative examples, program system 412 may create list of services432 in network data processing system 404. When program system 412 findsa service that is not in list of services 432, program system 412 mayadd that service to list of services 432. In these illustrativeexamples, program system 412 may also remove services from list ofservices 432 by program system 412.

In these illustrative examples, change 422 may also be identified usingpolicy 434. Policy 434 may be defined in resource configurationenvironment 400. Policy 434 is a set of rules. Policy 434 may be used byprogram system 412 to process information 420 collected by programsystem 412 for identifying changes, such as change 422, to improveperformance 426 of service 408. For example, service 408 may have beenrecently upgraded and may require a parameter change to improveperformance. In this example, a rule in policy 434 may be for programsystem 412 to configure a parameter of a particular version of service408. For example, the particular version of service 408 may be anupgraded version. In these illustrative examples, information 420collected by program system 412 may be used to identify the particularversion of service 408. In this illustrative example, when theparticular version of service 408 is identified, program system 412configures the parameter of service 408, thus improving the performanceof service 408.

As depicted, program system 412 may use permissions 436 to determinewhether change 422 can be made to configuration 424 for service 408.Permissions 436 may be defined and may be located in resourceconfiguration environment 400. For example, a user account may bepresent in each computer system in network data processing system 404that provides the permissions needed to make change 422. This useraccount may also be used to allow program system 412 to search forservices and download program code. For example, if program system 412is a plurality of programs, a program in program system 412 thatidentifies service 408 may cause another program in program system 412to be downloaded to identify and perform change 422. Logs from this useraccount may be used to obtain information about activities of programsystem 412.

In these illustrative examples, program system 412 may use servercomputer system 430 to change policy 434 and permissions 436 for use byprogram system 412. For example, in the absence of a rule in policy 434that identifies change 422 to improve performance 426 of service 408that can be made according to permissions 436, program system 412 mayuse server computer system 430 to change one or more rules in policy434. Additionally, in the absence of a rule in policy 434 thatidentifies change 422 to improve performance 426 of service 408 that canbe made according to permissions 436, program system 412 may also useserver computer system 430 to change one or more permissions inpermissions 436.

The illustration of resource configuration environment 400 in FIG. 4 isnot meant to imply physical or architectural limitations to the mannerin which an illustrative embodiment may be implemented. Other componentsin addition to and/or in place of the ones illustrated may be used. Somecomponents may be unnecessary. Also, the blocks are presented toillustrate some functional components. One or more of these functionalcomponents may be combined, divided, or combined and divided intodifferent blocks when implementing an illustrative embodiment.

For example, although network data processing system 404 has beendescribed with respect to cloud 406, other illustrative embodiments maybe applied to other types of network data processing systems in additionto and/or in place of cloud 406. As one illustrative example, networkdata processing system 404 may be a local area network (LAN), a widearea network (WAN), an intranet, the Internet, or some combinationthereof. As another illustrative example, list of services 432 mayinclude a list of services managed by program system 412 and a list ofservices not managed by program system 412. Services not managed may bemarked or flagged in the list to indicate whether a service is managed.

With reference now to FIG. 5, an illustration of a program system isdepicted in accordance with an illustrative embodiment. Program system500 is an illustrative example of one implementation of program system412 running on computer system 410 in FIG. 4. In this illustrativeexample, program system 500 is comprised of group of programs 501. Asdepicted in this illustrative example, group of programs 501 includessearch program 502, monitoring program 504, configuration analysisprogram 506, authorization program 508, configuring program 510, anddeployment program 512.

Search program 502 is configured to identify a service, such as service408 in computer system 410 in FIG. 4. In this illustrative example,search program 502 may also be configured to identify a set of resourcesused by the service, such as set of resources 418 in network dataprocessing system 404 used by service 408 in FIG. 4.

In one illustrative example, search program 502 may search for servicesin computer systems by first searching for computer systems in the localarea networks. If computer systems are in the local area networks,search program 502 may use administrative services of the computersystems to identify services in the identified computer systems in theseillustrative examples. In other illustrative examples, search program502 may communicate with computer system/server 12 in cloud computingnode 10 in FIG. 1 to identify services in computer systems known tocomputer system/server 12.

Search program 502 may classify the types of services identified. Also,search program 502 may identify services currently being managed byprogram system 500 in list of services 432 as well as services not beingmanaged by program system 500 in list of services 432 in FIG. 4 in theseillustrative examples. Still further, search program 502 may identify inlist of services 432 whether the service is being managed by programsystem 500.

In this example, monitoring program 504 monitors service 408 in FIG. 4.For example, monitoring program 504 may monitor log files for service408 to identify warnings and errors for service 408. In theseillustrative examples, monitoring program 504 may also monitor log filesfor set of resources 418 used by service 408.

Monitoring program 504 may also monitor performance 426 for service 408in FIG. 4 in these illustrative examples. In these illustrativeexamples, monitoring program 504 may monitor service 408 to identifyrequests made from service 408 to set of resources 418 used by service408. In this manner, monitoring program 504 may aid in identifyingservices in set of resources 418 for service 408.

Next, configuration analysis program 506 uses the information collectedto identify change 422 to configuration 424 for service 408 which willincrease performance 426 of service 408 in these illustrative examples.In these illustrative examples, configuration analysis program 506 mayalso identify a set of changes to a set of configurations for service408 which will increase performance 426 of service 408. For example,configuration analysis program 506 may identify a first set ofconfiguration changes to a first configuration for service 408 whichwill increase performance 426 of service 408 and a second set of changesto a second configuration of set of resources 418 used by service 408.

Authorization program 508 is configured to obtain permission to makechange 422 to configuration 424 for service 408. Authorization program508 may use permissions 436 to determine whether change 422 can be madeto configuration 424 for service 408 as depicted in FIG. 4. If change422 can be made, authorization program 508 performs steps needed toallow for change 422 to be made. For example, authorization program 508may perform steps to login to a user account. These steps may includeinitiating a login process and then providing a user identifier andpassword. Authorization program 508 may then change permissions 436 forthe resource to allow the resource be changed if needed.

Configuring program 510 makes change 422 to service 408, set ofresources 418, or both. Change 422 made by configuring program 510 maybe, for example, changing a configuration file, changing resources inset of resources 418 that are accessible by service 408, other servicesin set of resources 418, or both.

Additionally, when search program 502 identifies services that that arein set of resources 418 that are located on another computer system,search program 502 may cause the deployment of a program system on thatcomputer system. In this manner, one or more illustrative embodimentsmay replicate program systems on a network to find resources that mayaffect the performance of service 408 that are not located on computersystem 410.

Further, search program 502 also may find services on a computer systemthat does not currently have program system 500. Search program 502 maycause the deployment of a program system, such as program system 500, tosuch computer systems in the environment for analyzing services. Forexample, after deployment of program system 500 to computer systems thatdid not previously have program system 500, program system 500 will thenbe able to analyze the services directly on these computer systems.

In these illustrative examples, program system 500 may includedeployment program 512 in group of programs 416 in computer system 410.Information about managed services may be used to identify changes thatmay increase performance 426 of those services. With this information,proposals may be made to an organization that runs the services toprovide consulting to improve their services.

The illustrative example of program system 500 is not meant to implyphysical or architectural limitations to the manner in which anillustrative embodiment may be implemented. Other programs in additionto and/or in place of the ones illustrated may be used. Some programsmay be unnecessary. For example, configuration analysis program 506 maybe omitted from program system 500. This function may be provided as aseparate function in server computer system 430 in FIG. 4. As anotherexample, a service modification program may be included that modifiesservice 408 by inserting code into service 408 to measure performance426 of service 408.

Also, one or more of these programs may be combined, divided, orcombined and divided into different programs when implementing anillustrative embodiment. The programs may also be implemented on othercomputer systems in resource configuration environment 400. For example,one or more programs in program system 500 may be implemented in servercomputer system 430 in FIG. 4.

Turning now to FIG. 6, a block diagram illustrating components formanaging the operations of a program system in a resource configurationenvironment is depicted in accordance with an illustrative embodiment.Resource configuration environment 600 is an illustrative example ofresource configuration environment 400 in FIG. 4. FIG. 6 illustratesoperations that may be performed by an administrator to configure aprogram system and to authorize the program system to perform tasks inthe resource configuration environment.

As depicted, administrator 612 in resource configuration environment 600uses server computer system 430 to modify and approve permissions 436 inthese illustrative examples. For example, server computer system 430 mayreceive request 614 from program system 412 for permission to make achange to a configuration for a service to improve performance of theservice. In this illustrative example, responsive to server computersystem 430 receiving request 614, administrator 612 may be presentedwith a graphical user interface configured for allowing or denyingpermission to make the change.

In these illustrative examples, when a permission is given for a task,an authorization is present to perform the task. For example, before aprogram in a program system can restart a computer or modify aconfiguration for a service, the program in the program system may firstbe required to have authorization in the form of a permission.

In these illustrative examples, administrator 612 also uses servercomputer system 430 in resource configuration environment 600 to create,update, and delete particular rules in policy 434. For example,administrator 612 may use a graphical display for server computer system430 particularly configured to create, update, and delete one or morerules in policy 434. These changes to the rules may be made to improveperformance of a service.

For example, one rule may be to increase a buffer size for use by aservice when a buffer limit has been reached. In this example, theprogram system may identify that the buffer limit has been reached in anerror log generated by a platform that is executing the service. Anotherrule may be to reduce a number of concurrent requests that can beprocessed by a service when a central processing unit that is executingthe service has a performance indicating that the central processingunit use is over a particular threshold. These illustrative examples arenot meant to limit the number of rules in policy 434, the types of rulesin policy 434, or the types of changes the rules are for in policy 434.For example, rules in policy 434 may also be for improving performanceof the services used by a service. In still other examples, rules inpolicy 434 may also be for improving the resources used by service 408in FIG. 4. Further, any rule suitable for improving performance of acomponent in resource configuration environment 600 or outside ofresource configuration environment 600 may be used in these illustrativeexamples.

As depicted, administrator 612 further uses server computer system 430to retrieve information stored in repository 428 in these illustrativeexamples. For example, administrator 612 may use a graphical display forserver computer system 430 particularly configured to show informationin repository 428 about services collected by program system 412, suchas performance and configuration, and suggest configuration changes forimproving service performance.

As depicted, administrator 612 also creates and edits configurationinformation 615. In these illustrative examples, configurationinformation 615 may include configuration information for program system412. For example, administrator 612 may edit configuration information615 to define how often the operations in program system 412 areperformed.

In these illustrative examples, user 616 may use client computer system618 over network 620 to communicate with server computer system 430 touse services running on computer system 410 as depicted in FIG. 4.

Additionally, in some illustrative examples, user 616 may also log intoserver computer system 430 as administrator 612 to perform the work ofthe administrator from a computer system that is not in resourceconfiguration environment 600. In this particular example, clientcomputer system 618 may communicate with server computer system 430using secure communications, such as communicating over a virtualprivate network formed between client computer system 618 and servercomputer system 430 over network 620.

Turning next to FIG. 7, a figure of an example of information that isidentified by a computer system is depicted in accordance with anillustrative embodiment. Information 700 is an illustrative example ofinformation 420 in resource configuration environment 400 in FIG. 4.

Change 702 in information 700 is an illustrative example of change 422in FIG. 4. Configuration 704 in information 700 is an illustrativeexample of configuration 424 in FIG. 4. Performance 706 in information700 is an illustrative example of performance 426 in FIG. 4 in theseillustrative examples.

As depicted, change 702 in information 700 may include history ofchanges already made 710 and changes that need to be made 712 in theseillustrative examples. Changes that need to be made 712 may includeinformation from log files generated by services in computer systems inthe environment in these illustrative examples. For example, changesthat need to be made 712 may include information for a service in acomputer system indicating the service in the computer system is beingrestarted a particular number of times.

In this example, information for the service may include a log ofinformation for the service. The log may be an error log generated bythe computer system indicating a number of restarts of the service andother error information. This log is used by configuration analysisprogram 506 in FIG. 5 to identify a configuration change for the serviceto improve performance for the service. In these illustrative examples,when configuration analysis program 506 identifies that a number ofrestarts of a service exceed a threshold, configuration analysis program506 may use information 700 to identify a change to a configuration forthe service which will increase performance of the service. For example,configuration analysis program 506 may identify change 422 using a setof rules in policy 434 in resource configuration environment 400 toprocess information 700 to improve performance 426 of service 408 asdepicted in FIG. 4.

In these illustrative examples, history of changes already made 710 mayalso be used to determine a change to a configuration for a servicewhich will increase performance of the service. For example, responsiveto configuration analysis program 506 determining a change to aconfiguration for a service that has already been made, configurationanalysis program 506 may use information 700 to determine if furtherchanges to the configuration for the service are necessary. In thisexample, configuration analysis program 506 may determine whether thechanges previously made should be undone to return the configuration forthe service to a previous configuration that performed better than thecurrent configuration.

In these illustrative examples, configuration 704 may include serviceconfiguration 714, platform configuration 716, hardware configuration718, and cloud configuration 720. In these illustrative examples,configuration 704 may also be used to identify a change to aconfiguration for a service that increases performance of the service.For example, responsive to configuration analysis program 506determining that a change is needed to a configuration for a service toimprove performance for the service, configuration analysis program 506may wait for the change to be made in configuration 704 beforedetermining whether a second change is necessary.

As depicted, performance 706 may include software as a serviceperformance information 722, platform as a service performanceinformation 724, central processing unit (CPU) performance information726, network performance information 728, and other hardware performanceinformation 730 in these illustrative examples. In these illustrativeexamples, performance 706 may also be used to determine a change to aconfiguration for a service which will increase performance of theservice. For example, policy 434 in resource configuration environment400 in FIG. 4 may be used by configuration analysis program 506 toprocess software as a service performance information 722, platform as aservice performance information 724, central processing unit performanceinformation 726, network performance information 728, and other hardwareperformance information 730 to determine a change to a configuration fora service which will increase performance of the service.

In FIG. 8, a block diagram of components involved in managing a serviceis depicted in accordance with an illustrative embodiment. Resourceconfiguration environment 800 is an example of one implementation ofresource configuration environment 400 in FIG. 4.

As depicted, user request 801 is received by hypertext transportprotocol (HTTP) service 803 on hypertext transport protocol servercomputer system 802 in this illustrative example. Hypertext transportprotocol service 803 processes user request 801 by making a firstrequest to image service 805 on image file server computer system 804.This first request is for information retrieval from image file servercomputer system 804 in this illustrative example. As depicted, imagefile server computer system 804 has storage resources for storing andretrieving information that are accessed by image service 805. Hypertexttransport protocol service 803 also processes user request 801 bysending an order for user request 801 to order processing service 807 onorder processing computer system 806.

As depicted, order processing service 807 then receives the order foruser request 801 from hypertext transport protocol service 803. In thisillustrative example, order processing service 807 processes the orderfor user request 801 using service 408 in FIG. 4. For example, orderprocessing service 807 processes the order using database service 809 onorder fulfillment database computer system 808. As depicted, orderfulfillment database computer system 808 has database resources forstoring, retrieving, and fulfilling orders.

As depicted, some computer systems in this illustrative example areconfigured with a bot for use in improving performance for theprocessing of user request 801. In this illustrative example, bot 810 islocated in hypertext transport protocol server computer system 802, bot812 is located in image file server computer system 804, bot 814 and bot816 are located in order processing computer system 806, and bot 817 islocated on order fulfillment database computer system 808. In thisillustrative example, bot 810, bot 812, bot 814, bot 816, and bot 817provide information to repository 828. In other illustrative examples,bot 810, bot 812, bot 814, bot 816, and bot 817 also provide informationto computer system/server 12 in cloud computing node 10 in FIG. 1. Thisinformation is used to identify changes for improving performance of theprocessing of user request 801. In particular, bot 816 providesconfiguration 824 for order processing service 807 and performance 826of order processing service 807 in the form of information 820 torepository 828.

In these illustrative examples, some bots may not be present or they maybe present in a different computer system. For example, if bot 816 isnot present in order processing computer system 806, some other meansmay be used to identify changes to improve service performance. Forexample, the use of order processing service 807 by other services mayprovide enough information about order processing service 807. If enoughinformation is not present to improve service performance sufficiently,then the program system may identify that bot 816 needs to be deployedto order processing computer system 806.

In this illustrative example, configuration analysis program 818retrieves information from repository 828 and determines that aperformance problem exists between order processing service 807 andorder fulfillment database computer system 808. For example, responsiveto retrieving information 820, configuration analysis program 818 mayprocess information 820 using policy 834. While processing information820 using policy 834, configuration analysis program 818 may determinethat a performance problem exists for order processing service 807 ininformation 820.

For example, according to policy 834, if particular values ininformation 820 exceed a threshold, a performance problem exists fororder processing service 807. In this illustrative example, whileprocessing information 820 using policy 834, configuration analysisprogram 818 may determine a particular change is required forconfiguration 824 for order processing service 807 for improvingperformance 826 of order processing service 807.

Responsive to determining the particular change to configuration 824 forimproving performance 826 of order processing service 807, configurationanalysis program 818 sends the particular configuration change to bot814 in order processing computer system 806. In this illustrativeexample, bot 814 receives the particular change and is configured tomake the particular change to configuration 824 for order processingservice 807. In this illustrative example, when the particular change isreceived, bot 814 makes the particular change to configuration 824 fororder processing service 807 for improving performance 826 of orderprocessing service 807. Thus, performance 826 of order processingservice 807 is improved, which in turn also improves the performance inprocessing of user requests such as user request 801.

With reference now to FIG. 9, an illustrative example of a flowchart ofa process for managing a service is depicted in accordance with anillustrative embodiment. The steps in FIG. 9 may be implemented inresource configuration environment 400 in FIG. 4. In particular, thesteps may be implemented in software, hardware, or a combination of thetwo in program system 412 in computer system 410 in resourceconfiguration environment 400 in FIG. 4. Still more particularly, thesteps may be implemented by search program 502, monitoring program 504,configuration analysis program 506, authorization program 508, andconfiguring program 510 in FIG. 5.

The process begins by identifying a service on a computer system in anetwork data processing system (step 902). In this illustrative example,the service may be identified by search program 502. For example, searchprogram 502 may identify service 408 in computer system 410 in FIG. 4.

The process then identifies a set of resources used by the identifiedservice (step 904). In this illustrative example, the set of resourcesused by the identified service may be also identified by search program502. For example, search program 502 may identify set of resources 418in use by service 408 in computer system 410 in network data processingsystem 404 in FIG. 4.

The process collects information about the service and the set ofresources used by the service (step 906). In this illustrative example,the information collected may be collected by search program 502 and bymonitoring program 504. The information collected in this illustrativeexample may include history of changes already made 710, changes thatneed to be made 712, service configuration 714, platform configuration716, hardware configuration 718, cloud configuration 720, software as aservice performance information 722, platform as a service performanceinformation 724, central processing unit performance information 726,network performance information 728, and other hardware performanceinformation 730 in FIG. 7, and any other information in resourceconfiguration environment 400 suitable for identifying a change to aconfiguration for the service to increase performance of the services.

The process identifies a change to a configuration for the service toincrease performance of the service based on the collected information(step 908). In this illustrative example, the change to theconfiguration for the service to increase performance of the servicesbased on the collected information may be identified by configurationanalysis program 506 in FIG. 5.

The process then determines if a change was identified to aconfiguration for the service to increase performance of the servicesbased on the collected information (step 910). If a change to aconfiguration for the service to increase performance of the servicesbased on the collected information was not identified, the processterminates. If a change to a configuration for the service to increaseperformance of the services based on the collected information wasidentified, the process retrieves a set of permissions to make changes(step 912). In this illustrative example, the set of permissions may bepermissions 436 in resource configuration environment 400 in FIG. 4.

The process determines if permission exists in the set of permissions tomake the change to the configuration for the service to increaseperformance of the services based on the collected information (step914). In this illustrative example, the determination of whether thepermission exists in the set of permissions may be made by authorizationprogram 508 in FIG. 5. If the permission does not exist in the set ofpermissions, the process requests permission to make the change (step918) with the process terminating thereafter. In other illustrativeexamples, in response to the permission not existing, the process may goto step 918 to request permission and then responsive to receiving thepermission may continue to step 916 (not shown).

Responsive to the permission existing to make the change, the processmakes the identified change to the configuration for the service toincrease performance of the services based on the collected information(step 916) with the process terminating thereafter. In this illustrativeexample, the identified change to the configuration for the service toincrease performance of the services based on the collected informationmay be made by configuring program 510 in FIG. 5.

In these illustrative examples, the steps in FIG. 9 may be performedperiodically. For example, configuration information 615 in FIG. 6 forprogram system 412 may be used to determine how long to wait beforerepeating the steps in FIG. 9.

Turning next to FIG. 10, an illustrative example of a flowchart of aprocess for managing a service is depicted in accordance with anillustrative embodiment. The steps in FIG. 10 may be implemented inresource configuration environment 400 in FIG. 4. In particular, thesteps may be implemented in software, hardware, or a combination of thetwo in program system 412 in computer system 410 in FIG. 4. Still moreparticularly, the steps may be implemented by search program 502 anddeployment program 512 in FIG. 5. As depicted, FIG. 10 performs a numberof steps which identify computer systems for deployment of a programsystem to the computer systems for analyzing and managing services onthe computer systems.

The process begins by searching for computer systems in a network dataprocessing system to identify computer systems that have a set ofservices that need to be managed by program system 412 (step 1000). Theprocess then creates a list of computer systems that do not have programsystem 412 (step 1002). For example, search program 502 may create alist of computer systems that do not have program system 412 as depictedin FIG. 4. In this example, when searching for computer systems, searchprogram 502 may add each computer system found that does not alreadyhave program system 412 to a list of computer systems that do not haveprogram system 412.

Also, search program 502 may first identify if there are a set ofservices on each computer system that need to be managed by programsystem 412 before adding each computer system to the list. For example,program system 412 may support managing services of a particular type.In this example, program system 412 may perform a check on the computersystem for services of the particular type before adding the computersystem to the list. In still other examples, all computer systems foundby search program 502 may be added to the list by search program 502. Inthese illustrative examples, search program 502 may also add to the listan indication regarding the services and types of services found on eachcomputer system that does not currently have program system 412.

The process then stores the list of computer systems that do notcurrently have program system 412 (step 1004). In this illustrativeexample, search program 502 may store the list of computer systems thatdo not have program system 412 in repository 428 in resourceconfiguration environment 400 in FIG. 4.

The process receives a command to deploy a program system on a computersystem to manage one or more services on the computer system (step1006). In this illustrative example, the command to deploy the programsystem may be received from server computer system 430 in resourceconfiguration environment 400 in FIG. 4. For example, the command todeploy the program system may be a command to deploy bot 414 in group ofprograms 416 in program system 412 on computer system 410 in FIG. 4. Inother examples, the process may receive a command to deploy a set ofprograms in group of programs 416 in program system 412 on computersystem 410 which are particularly configured to manage one or moreservices on computer system 410.

Responsive to receiving the command, the process may download, install,and configure the program system onto a computer system in the networkdata processing system for managing a set of services on the computersystem (step 1008) with the process terminating thereafter. In thisillustrative example, the download, install, and configure steps may beperformed by deployment program 512. In this illustrative example,responsive to receiving the command to deploy bot 414 in group ofprograms 416 in program system 412 on computer system 410, deploymentprogram 512 may download, install, and configure bot 414 in group ofprograms 416 on computer system 410 for analyzing one or more serviceson computer system 410. In other examples, responsive to receiving thecommand to deploy a set of programs, the process may download, install,and configure the set of programs onto a computer system in the networkdata processing system for managing the one or more services of the setof services not currently being managed.

In FIG. 11, an illustrative example of a flowchart of a process formanaging a service is depicted in accordance with an illustrativeembodiment. The steps in FIG. 11 may be implemented in resourceconfiguration environment 400 in FIG. 4. In particular, the steps may beimplemented in software, hardware, or a combination of the two in servercomputer system 430 in FIG. 4. Still more particularly, the steps may beimplemented by configuration analysis program 506 in FIG. 5 on servercomputer system 430.

The process begins by retrieving, from a repository, configurationinformation and performance information for a service (step 1100). Inthis illustrative example, configuration analysis program 506 on servercomputer system 430 retrieves information 420, comprising configuration424 and performance 426 information for service 408, from repository 428in FIG. 4.

The process then retrieves, from the repository, configurationinformation and performance information for a set of resources used bythe service (step 1102). In this illustrative example, configurationanalysis program 506 on server computer system 430 retrieves fromrepository 428 information 420 collected and stored by program system412 in FIG. 4. Information 420 retrieved from repository 428 may includehistory of changes already made 710, changes that need to be made 712,service configuration 714, platform configuration 716, hardwareconfiguration 718, cloud configuration 720, software as a serviceperformance information 722, platform as a service performanceinformation 724, central processing unit performance information 726,network performance information 728, and other hardware performanceinformation 730 in FIG. 7, and any other information suitable foridentifying a change to a configuration for the service to increaseperformance of the service.

The process analyzes the retrieved configuration and performanceinformation for the service and the set of resources used by the serviceto identify a command for improving performance (step 1104). In thisillustrative example, the command for improving performance may be acommand for improving performance 426 of service 408 in computer system410 based on the retrieved information from repository 428 in FIG. 4.For example, the identified command for improving performance 426 ofservice 408 in computer system 410 may be identified by configurationanalysis program 506 on server computer system 430.

The process then determines if a command was identified for improvingperformance (step 1106). If a command for improving performance was notidentified, the process terminates. Responsive to identifying thecommand for improving performance, the process identifies a program in aprogram system configured to perform the command when a permission ispresent (step 1108). In this illustrative example, configurationanalysis program 506 identifies a program in program system 412configured to perform the command based on group of programs 416 inprogram system 412 in resource configuration environment 400 in FIG. 4.For example, configuration analysis program 506 may identify bot 414 inFIG. 4 in group of programs 416 to perform the command based on bot 414being identified in group of programs 416 as being able to perform theidentified command.

The process adds a permission to perform the command to a set ofpermissions for the program system (step 1110). In this illustrativeexample, configuration analysis program 506 adds a permission to performthe command to a set of permissions for program system 412 based onpermissions 436 in resource configuration environment 400 in FIG. 4. Forexample, configuration analysis program 506 may identify permissions ofprogram system 412 in permissions 436 in FIG. 4 for executing thecommand being identified in group of programs 416. If the permission inpermissions 436 for executing the command is absent, configurationanalysis program 506 may add the permission to permissions 436 forexecuting the command by storing the permission in permissions 436. Theprocess sends the command to the program system (step 1112), with theprocess terminating thereafter.

In these illustrative examples, the steps in FIG. 11 may be performedperiodically. For example, configuration information 615 in FIG. 6 forprogram system 412 may be used to determine how long to wait beforerepeating the steps in FIG. 11.

Turning now to FIG. 12, an illustration of a data processing system isdepicted in accordance with an illustrative embodiment. In thisillustrative example, data processing system 1200 includescommunications fabric 1202, which provides communications betweenprocessor unit 1204, memory 1206, persistent storage 1208,communications unit 1210, input/output (I/O) unit 1212, and display1214. Data processing system 1200 is an example of a data processingsystem that may be used to implement managing a service in a networkdata processing system. Data processing system 1200 is also an exampleof a data processing system that may be used to implement computersystem/server 12 and cloud computing nodes such as cloud computing node10 in FIG. 1. Data processing system 1200 also may be used to implementpersonal digital assistant (PDA) or cellular telephone 54A, desktopcomputer 54B, laptop computer 54C, automobile computer system 54N, andother local computing devices used by cloud consumers in FIG. 2. Dataprocessing system 1200 may also be used to implement the hardware andsoftware components of hardware and software layer 60 in FIG. 3. Moreparticularly, data processing system 1200 may be used to implementserver computer system 430 and computer system 410 in FIG. 4; clientcomputer system 618 in FIG. 6; and hyper text transport server computersystem 802, image file server computer system 804, order processingcomputer system 806, and order fulfillment database computer system 808in FIG. 8.

Processor unit 1204 serves to process instructions for software that maybe loaded into memory 1206. Processor unit 1204 may be a number ofprocessors, a multi-processor core, or some other type of processor,depending on the particular implementation. “A number,” as used hereinwith reference to an item, means one or more items. Further, processorunit 1204 may be implemented using a number of heterogeneous processorsystems in which a main processor is present with secondary processorson a single chip. As another illustrative example, processor unit 1204may be a symmetric multi-processor system containing multiple processorsof the same type.

Memory 1206 and persistent storage 1208 are examples of storage devices1216. A storage device is any piece of hardware that is capable ofstoring information, such as, for example, without limitation, data,program code in functional form, and/or other suitable informationeither on a temporary basis and/or a permanent basis. Storage devices1216 may also be referred to as computer readable storage devices inthese examples. Memory 1206, in these examples, may be, for example, arandom access memory or any other suitable volatile or non-volatilestorage device. Persistent storage 1208 may take various forms,depending on the particular implementation.

For example, persistent storage 1208 may contain one or more componentsor devices. For example, persistent storage 1208 may be a hard drive, aflash memory, a rewritable optical disk, a rewritable magnetic tape, orsome combination of the above. The media used by persistent storage 1208also may be removable. For example, a removable hard drive may be usedfor persistent storage 1208.

Communications unit 1210, in these examples, provides for communicationswith other data processing systems or devices. In these examples,communications unit 1210 is a network interface card. Communicationsunit 1210 may provide communications through the use of either or bothphysical and wireless communications links.

Input/output unit 1212 allows for input and output of data with otherdevices that may be connected to data processing system 1200. Forexample, input/output unit 1212 may provide a connection for user inputthrough a keyboard, a mouse, and/or some other suitable input device.Further, input/output unit 1212 may send output to a printer. Display1214 provides a mechanism to display information to a user.

Instructions for the operating system, applications, and/or programs maybe located in storage devices 1216, which are in communication withprocessor unit 1204 through communications fabric 1202. In theseillustrative examples, the instructions are in a functional form onpersistent storage 1208. These instructions may be loaded into memory1206 for processing by processor unit 1204. The processes of thedifferent embodiments may be performed by processor unit 1204 usingcomputer-implemented instructions, which may be located in a memory,such as memory 1206.

These instructions are referred to as program code, computer usableprogram code, or computer readable program code that may be read andprocessed by a processor in processor unit 1204. The program code in thedifferent embodiments may be embodied on different physical or computerreadable storage media, such as memory 1206 or persistent storage 1208.

Program code 1218 is located in a functional form on computer readablemedia 1220 that is selectively removable and may be loaded onto ortransferred to data processing system 1200 for processing by processorunit 1204. Program code 1218 and computer readable media 1220 formcomputer program product 1222 in these examples. In one example,computer readable media 1220 may be computer readable storage media 1224or computer readable signal media 1226.

Computer readable storage media 1224 may include, for example, anoptical or magnetic disk that is inserted or placed into a drive orother device that is part of persistent storage 1208 for transfer onto astorage device, such as a hard drive, that is part of persistent storage1208. Computer readable storage media 1224 also may take the form of apersistent storage, such as a hard drive, a thumb drive, or a flashmemory, that is connected to data processing system 1200.

In some instances, computer readable storage media 1224 may not beremovable from data processing system 1200. In these examples, computerreadable storage media 1224 is a physical or tangible storage deviceused to store program code 1218 rather than a medium that propagates ortransmits program code 1218. Computer readable storage media 1224 isalso referred to as a computer readable tangible storage device or acomputer readable physical storage device. In other words, computerreadable storage media 1224 is media that can be touched by a person.

Alternatively, program code 1218 may be transferred to data processingsystem 1200 using computer readable signal media 1226. Computer readablesignal media 1226 may be, for example, a propagated data signalcontaining program code 1218. For example, computer readable signalmedia 1226 may be an electromagnetic signal, an optical signal, and/orany other suitable type of signal. These signals may be transmitted overcommunications links, such as wireless communications links, opticalfiber cable, coaxial cable, a wire, and/or any other suitable type ofcommunications link. In other words, the communications link and/or theconnection may be physical or wireless in the illustrative examples.

In some illustrative embodiments, program code 1218 may be downloadedover a network to persistent storage 1208 from another device or dataprocessing system through computer readable signal media 1226 for usewithin data processing system 1200. For instance, program code stored ina computer readable storage medium in a server data processing systemmay be downloaded over a network from the server to data processingsystem 1200. The data processing system providing program code 1218 maybe a server computer, a client computer, a remote data processingsystem, or some other device capable of storing and transmitting programcode 1218. For example, program code stored in the computer readablestorage medium in data processing system 1200 may be downloaded over anetwork from the remote data processing system to the computer readablestorage medium in data processing system 1200. Additionally, programcode stored in the computer readable storage medium in the servercomputer may be downloaded over the network from the server computer toa computer readable storage medium in the remote data processing system.

The different components illustrated for data processing system 1200 arenot meant to provide architectural limitations to the manner in whichdifferent embodiments may be implemented. The different illustrativeembodiments may be implemented in a data processing system includingcomponents in addition to and/or in place of those illustrated for dataprocessing system 1200. Other components shown in FIG. 12 can be variedfrom the illustrative examples shown. The different embodiments may beimplemented using any hardware device or system capable of runningprogram code. As one example, the data processing system may includeorganic components integrated with inorganic components and/or may becomprised entirely of organic components excluding a human being. Forexample, a storage device may be comprised of an organic semiconductor.

In another illustrative example, processor unit 1204 may take the formof a hardware unit that has circuits that are manufactured or configuredfor a particular use. This type of hardware may perform operationswithout needing program code to be loaded into a memory from a storagedevice to be configured to perform the operations.

For example, when processor unit 1204 takes the form of a hardware unit,processor unit 1204 may be a circuit system, an application specificintegrated circuit (ASIC), a programmable logic device, or some othersuitable type of hardware configured to perform a number of operations.With a programmable logic device, the device is configured to performthe number of operations. The device may be reconfigured at a later timeor may be permanently configured to perform the number of operations.Examples of programmable logic devices include, for example, aprogrammable logic array, a programmable array logic device, a fieldprogrammable logic array, a field programmable gate array, and othersuitable hardware devices. With this type of implementation, programcode 1218 may be omitted, because the processes for the differentembodiments are implemented in a hardware unit.

In still another illustrative example, processor unit 1204 may beimplemented using a combination of processors found in computers andhardware units. Processor unit 1204 may have a number of hardware unitsand a number of processors that are configured to run program code 1218.With this depicted example, some of the processes may be implemented inthe number of hardware units, while other processes may be implementedin the number of processors.

In another example, a bus system may be used to implement communicationsfabric 1202 and may be comprised of one or more buses, such as a systembus or an input/output bus. Of course, the bus system may be implementedusing any suitable type of architecture that provides for a transfer ofdata between different components or devices attached to the bus system.

Additionally, communications unit 1210 may include a number of devicesthat transmit data, receive data, or transmit and receive data.Communications unit 1210 may be, for example, a modem or a networkadapter, two network adapters, or some combination thereof. Further, amemory may be, for example, memory 1206, or a cache, such as found in aninterface and memory controller hub that may be present incommunications fabric 1202.

The terminology used herein is for the purpose of describing particularembodiments only and is not intended to be limiting of the invention. Asused herein, the singular forms “a,” “an,” and “the” are intended toinclude the plural forms as well, unless the context clearly indicatesotherwise. It will be further understood that the terms “comprises”and/or “comprising,” when used in this specification, specify thepresence of stated features, integers, steps, operations, elements,and/or components but do not preclude the presence or addition of one ormore other features, integers, steps, operations, elements, components,and/or groups thereof.

Thus, the illustrative embodiments provide a method, apparatus, andcomputer program product for managing a service in a network dataprocessing system. In one example, a program runs in a computer systemand identifies a service on the computer system in the network dataprocessing system. The program identifies a set of resources used by theservice. The program collects information about the service and the setof resources. The program identifies a change to the configuration forthe service to increase performance of the service in which the changesidentified using the information collected by the program.

The descriptions of the various embodiments of the present inventionhave been presented for purposes of illustration, but are not intendedto be exhaustive or limited to the embodiments disclosed. Manymodifications and variations will be apparent to those of ordinary skillin the art without departing from the scope and spirit of the describedembodiment. The terminology used herein was chosen to best explain theprinciples of the embodiment, the practical application, or technicalimprovement over technologies found in the marketplace, or to enableothers of ordinary skill in the art to understand the embodimentsdisclosed herein.

The flowcharts and block diagrams in the figures illustrate thearchitecture, functionality, and operation of possible implementationsof systems, methods, and computer program products according to variousembodiments of the present invention. In this regard, each block in theflowcharts or block diagrams may represent a module, segment, or portionof code, which comprises one or more executable instructions forimplementing the specified logical function(s). It should also be notedthat, in some alternative implementations, the functions noted in theblock may occur out of the order noted in the figures. For example, twoblocks shown in succession may, in fact, be performed substantiallyconcurrently, or the blocks may sometimes be performed in the reverseorder, depending upon the functionality involved. It will also be notedthat each block of the block diagrams and/or flowchart illustrations,and combinations of blocks in the block diagrams and/or flowchartillustrations, can be implemented by special purpose hardware-basedsystems that perform the specified functions or acts, or combinations ofspecial purpose hardware and computer instructions.

What is claimed is:
 1. A computer comprising: a bus; a processor unitconnected to the bus; a computer readable storage device connected tothe bus; and program code for managing a service, wherein the programcode is stored on the computer readable storage device and is configuredto be run by the processor unit to: identify, by a set of bots runningon the computer, the service on the computer; identify, by the set ofbots running on the computer, a set of resources used by the service;collect, by the set of bots running on the computer, information aboutthe service and the set of resources used by the service; identify, bythe set of bots running on the computer, a change to a configuration forthe service to increase performance of the service, wherein the changeis based, at least in part, upon the information collected by the set ofbots; and change, by the set of bots running on the computer, theconfiguration for the service using the change identified for theservice.
 2. The computer of claim 1, wherein a first bot in the set ofbots performs a step from one of: identifying, by the set of botsrunning on the computer, the service on the computer; identifying, bythe set of bots running on the computer, the set of resources used bythe service; collecting, by the set of bots running on the computer, theinformation about the service and the set of resources used by theservice; identifying, by the set of bots running on the computer, thechange to the configuration for the service to increase the performanceof the service, wherein the change is identified using the informationcollected by the set of bots; and changing, by the set of bots runningon the computer, the configuration for the service using the changeidentified for the service, while a second bot in the set of botsperforms a different step from one of: identifying, by the set of botsrunning on the computer, the service on the computer; identifying, bythe set of bots running on the computer, the set of resources used bythe service; collecting, by the set of bots running on the computer, theinformation about the service and the set of resources used by theservice, wherein the information collected further including a historyof changes already made and changes that need to be made; identifying,by machine logic, the change to the configuration for the service toincrease the performance of the service, wherein the change isidentified using the information collected by the set of bots; andchanging, by machine logic, the configuration for the service using thechange identified for the service.
 3. The computer of claim 1, wherein afirst bot in the set of bots running on the computer causes another botin the set of bots to be downloaded to the computer while managing theservice.
 4. The computer of claim 1, wherein the change is identifiedusing the information collected by the set of bots running on thecomputer and a policy for increasing performance of the service, andwherein the information collected including the changes that need to bemade further including information from log files generated by servicesin the computer.
 5. A computer program product for managing a service,the computer program product comprising: a computer readable storagedevice; first program code for a set of bots for identifying the serviceon a computer system in a network data processing system; second programcode for the set of bots for identifying a set of resources used by theservice; third program code for the set of bots for collectinginformation about the service and the set of resources used by theservice, wherein the information collected further including a historyof changes already made and changes that need to be made; fourth programcode for identifying a change to a configuration for the service toincrease performance of the service, wherein the change is based, atleast in part, upon the information collected by the set of bots; andfifth program code for changing the configuration for the service usingthe change identified for the service, wherein the first program code,the second program code, the third program code, the fourth programcode, and the fifth program code are stored on the computer readablestorage device.
 6. The computer program product of claim 5, wherein afirst bot in the set of bots running on the computer system causesanother bot in the set of bots to be downloaded to the computer systemwhile managing the service in the network data processing system.
 7. Thecomputer program product of claim 5, wherein the computer readablestorage device is in a data processing system, and the program code isdownloaded over a network from a remote data processing system to thecomputer readable storage device in the data processing system.
 8. Thecomputer program product of claim 7, wherein the computer readablestorage device is a first computer readable storage device, and whereinthe first computer readable storage device is in a server dataprocessing system, and wherein the program code is downloaded over thenetwork to the remote data processing system for use in a secondcomputer readable storage device in the remote data processing system.